BAIT: Riz Ahmed faces himself in his brilliantly hilarious new comedy (Review)
A witty, raw, imaginative love letter to Muslims, South Asians, and creatives in the diaspora chasing their dreams without losing themselves
BAIT is out now! Watch all 6 episodes on Prime Video.
Hilarious, witty, honest, thoughtful, and imaginative, BAIT follows an out-of-work actor who messes up his audition for the role of a lifetime and suffers an existential crisis while his life spirals out of control. Created by Riz Ahmed, BAIT is sure to hook you!
Ahmed's latest project, BAIT is confident and unapologetic in its vision. It’s not trying to be something it’s not - the show doesn’t shrink to try and appeal to a wide audience, nor does it try to accurately represent the entirety of the communities it depicts. It's authentic to its own story, and in that, Ahmed has created a gem. He's given us a thought-provoking story and a messy, compelling character that many of us can relate to.
That conviction is antithetical to our main character, Shah Latif (Ahmed). He's trying to please everybody while losing his sense of self. Chasing validation and belonging in all the wrong places. The monologue from his audition sums it up quite well with the line, "I don't live with myself, I live with whoever they need me to be." Trying to be the perfect son, the palatable POC actor the industry can bet on, and a good representation of the Muslim and Pakistani communities in the UK. But in that pursuit, he seems to be alienating everyone around him, especially his family and community.
One thing that struck me with BAIT is the universality of experiences amongst the diaspora. While each of our cultures is distinct with its own nuances and richness, there is a kinship in how similar certain situations are. I’m not South Asian, I didn’t grow up in the UK, I'm not an actor, but I can still relate to a lot of the things Shah experiences. The family dynamics. The inner tension. The push and pull between carving a place for yourself in the West and finding belonging within your ethnic or religious community. Being your own worst critic. The almost maddening pursuit of chasing your dreams without losing yourself.
BAIT delicately depicts the loneliness and self-inflicted pressure of carving your own path in the world, especially as a POC in a creative career. The pressure is that if you don’t succeed, somehow the entire pursuit wasn't worth it to begin with. That pressure finally causes Shah to crack, feeling as if he's fighting against the world. On one hand, it seems to him like even his own family and community are determined to misunderstand him, instead of providing support. On the other hand, the industry itself - making him change and mould to their standards that were never designed for people like him to succeed.
We see that crack shows up as a surreal psychosis, talking to a severed pig's head, playing devil's advocate, and revealing his own fears and insecurities. There's real gravity to this situation, with discussions around mental health, which is balanced by the absurdity of the situation. It all comes to a head (pun intended) in a climactic confrontation between real and imaginary.
And the humour? Sublime! There are a lot of unexpected jokes that will have you bursting into laughter – situational humour, some cheeky call-outs for the entertainment industry, and even a whole Bollywood entrance montage that was playful and hilarious. I never thought I’d be laughing at terrorist jokes, but those got some good laughs out of me. What made that humour hit was how intentional it was. A way for us to laugh together, not having jokes made at our expense.
While the comedy is a huge part of the storytelling, there's also so much depth and heart in this story. The family dynamics, with fun banter and roasting amongst each other, are intercut with some real pain and trauma. It comes bubbling to the surface when Shah's father faints while leading prayer, leading to emotions running high and hurtful accusations being hurled. But the realest part was how, in a medical emergency, the family puts everything aside to be there for one another. The endless love and care they have for one another continue to endure every hardship they face. That's the real strength of this story.
The performances are simply wonderful. Ahmed beautifully portrays the nervous, insecure actor who's trying to do it all. He's well contrasted by Shah's cousins, Zulfi (Guz Khan, "Man Like Mobeen"), who always has his back and calls him out when needed, and Qurrat-ul-ain, or Q (Aasiya Shah, "Raised by Wolves"), who's self-assured and quippy. His parents Tahira (Sheeba Chaddha) and Parvez (Sajid Hasan) provide the perfect balance in the chaotic family dynamic.
It was also nice to see some familiar faces in the cast. Shah's filmmaker and reporter ex-girlfriend Yasmin (Ritu Arya, "The Umbrella Academy"), his successful, rich, Dubai-residing family rival Salim (Nabhaan Rizwan, "In Camera", "Kaos"), and his suave, polished, industry rival Raj (Himesh Patel, "The Assessment").
Ahmed also champions diversity beyond the main story. On screen, Shah’s ex-girlfriend is a South Asian woman (Arya), his manager is a Black woman (Weruche Opia, "I May Destroy You"), and the director of the Bond film is a woman (Maxine Peake, "I Swear"). Behind the camera is Director Bassam Tariq ("Mogul Mowgli"), who directed the first 3 episodes, and Composer Shruti Kumar ("Interview with the Vampire").
BAIT is what we get when we have proper representation on screen and behind the scenes. This show felt like a love letter (albeit a raw one) for Muslims, South Asians, and diaspora stuck between two worlds and feeling misunderstood by both.
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